1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the art of refrigerators and, more specifically, to a rack and pinion storage system for a drawer assembly of a refrigerator.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Pullout drawers in refrigerator cabinets, and in particular bottom mounted freezer drawers in which the freezer compartment is located at the bottom of the refrigerator while the fresh food compartment is located at the top of the refrigerator, are often used to increase versatility of storing a wide range of food items, and increasing the accessibility of items stored in the lower portion of the refrigerator cabinet. To this end, in commercially available bottom mounted freezers, a large freezer drawer or basket is provided in connection with or in place of a hinged or swinging door. These bottom mounted freezer drawers are typically mounted on slides or glides fastened to the sidewalls of the inner liner of the refrigerator cabinet and telescopically extend horizontally, outwardly of the refrigerator. Unfortunately, these slides extend at different rates when the large drawer is opened and closed, particularly when the horizontal force, i.e., the consumer pushing or pulling on the drawer or basket, is not centered. The effect of the different rates of extension creates a “wobble” as the drawer or basket is extended and inserted. This drawer rack or wobble typically occurs when the velocity of the drawer and glide assembly varies with position along the face of the drawer as it is extended or inserted.
A further problem with presently available systems is that it is difficult to ensure identical, or near identical, placement relative to the refrigerator cabinet face of left and right drawer components. Without proper component placement, the drawer may not completely close, resulting in the failure to create an effective seal which allows air to permeate into or out of the drawer. The inability of the drawer to completely close creates an inefficient system, making it difficult to regulate temperatures, humidity, and other factors within the drawer.
Attempts have been made in drawer systems to overcome wobble or racking problems. For instance, anti-rack systems have been developed for drawers and drawer glides in which a shaft having a gear wheel mounted on each side is used for engaging associated racks. Though such systems prevent wobble, these attempts have not prevented the drawer from assuming a racked condition resulting from the opening force or food load center of mass occurring significantly away from the drawer's center. Likewise, no simple means of aligning, during initial assembly, left and right gear wheels to associated rack gears of a drawer employing a rack and pinion system has been available. As a result, if the drawer, and in particular the rack and pinion system, becomes misaligned, no means exists for the correction of the misaligned drawer apart from complete disassembly and removal of the drawer from the cabinet. This task becomes particularly difficult when the drawer is filled with food or other stored items.
Complex mechanisms involving the resetting of misaligned slide pairs in a drawer suspension system have been developed. Such systems require the removal, reinsertion and moving of the drawer in and out from the cabinet to reset the misaligned drawer. Due to the removal and reinsertion of the drawer, as well as the inward and outward movement required to reset the misaligned drawer, these systems do not provide much improvement, as the drawer must still be removed, and a significant amount of effort is required of the drawer operator to realign the drawer.
Other systems exist that involve a single displaceable gear tooth provided on the end of a rack gear for enabling meshing with a single pinion that approaches from beyond the end of the rack. The use of a single rack and pinion, however, does not provide a stable means of securing the drawer, as a minor amount of lateral force or movement of the drawer will cause misalignment of the drawer, as well as the rack and pinion, causing wobble, or resulting in jamming of the drawer.
Therefore, there exists a need in the art for a simple and easily installed refrigerator drawer system having a stable means for sliding the drawer into and out of a refrigerator cabinet.